Thank you, Mr. Chair.
This is an important debate and conversation we're having right now.
I want to thank the witnesses for taking the time to be here and I hope that we will have them in our next meeting, where we can ask some questions and get into their testimony. I was very much looking forward to that and I'm sorry that we'll have to postpone it to next time. I do hope that they come again in person, if possible. I know one's online and another is in person, but I'm hoping to see them again here in person if possible. I'm very grateful to them for taking the time to be here.
So much attention has been given to Ukraine. So much of our country's attention has been focused on it, in our hearts and minds and discussions as parliamentarians, and so much ink has been spilled in the papers about Ukraine. We, all of us as a country, clearly support the territorial integrity and political integrity of Ukraine. Obviously, we take extreme offence with the fact that Russia has betrayed article 2(4) of the UN charter, which speaks directly to the territorial integrity and political integrity of nation states. What is happening is a great affront, which is exactly the reason that we as a country have been fully in solidarity with Ukrainians, why we with our allies—including the United Kingdom, the U.S., EU, Australia and many others—have been checking President Putin and have been ensuring that this aggression comes to a halt.
We have done so much already as a country to shore up and restore Ukraine, Ukrainians and the independence of the country. We know, just to remind us here around the table, that as of February 22, we have imposed sanctions on the Russian Duma, the State Duma, which was an important act. That was followed up with other acts, including on February 24, when we sanctioned President Putin's inner circle and close contacts. Then on February 25, we moved against President Putin himself as an individual and sanctioned not only him but also his chief of staff, and we continued on to his foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and the ministers of justice, finance and defence. We have acted clearly and swiftly.
Speaking of swift, we've also seen that Russia was removed from the whole SWIFT system, which sent a signal that we are not just sanctioning individuals—those who are leading this war machine—but also making it hurt so that they cannot profit from this, the country cannot profit from this, and people respond to this. Thankfully, we know there have been many brave individuals within Russia itself, including key journalists, including civil society actors and protesters, who have come forth and spoken against their own government. This is extremely brave. We know this. It's easy for us in Canada to do this and it's easy for those in Australia or the EU to do this, but it's extremely difficult for those in Russia to stand up and speak to their own government in speaking truth to power. This is something we have to remind ourselves of and support those sorts of actions.
On March 1, we said that we intend to ban Russian-registered ships from entering our waters, our ports and our internal waters, which is an important move. On March 2, we additionally announced that we would impose restrictions on an additional 10 key individuals from two important companies in Russia's energy sector, including Gazprom.
Today, at a G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that $500 million in additional military assistance would be given to Ukraine.
This is on top of the $500 million already allocated in budget 2022 towards military surveillance and communications equipment. We have thus far sanctioned 1,400 individuals and entities. This is all in an effort to halt what's happening. All of this that I just mentioned is on top of the $3.4 billion in assistance that we have given to Ukraine.
We are steadfast in our support of Ukraine, and we have done so much already, but I think the key issue here is the motion. I'll read it again. It says:
That the committee report to the House that it calls on the Government of Canada to immediately revoke the waiver to Russian sanctions granted for the export of Gazprom turbines.
As my colleague Mr. Oliphant said, the challenge around this particular motion is that it is putting forth what should be a potential recommendation and putting it forth in terms of a motion from this committee that we vote upon.
I'm fairly new here—three years. Most of the others have been here many more years than I have. What I've learned in my three years here is that this type of statement might be very valid and it might be where we land as a committee; but the rightful place for it is within a recommendation. To fast-forward and fast-track that through a motion isn't ideal. It is far from appropriate, I would suggest, although it's within the rules. However, I would suggest that it be put forth as a recommendation, and that's where it belongs.
To make a long story short, we've done so much for Ukraine. We stand by Ukraine. We have stood by Ukraine not only in words but also in concrete actions since the beginning. We will continue to do so. With respect to this particular motion, it's best placed in a potential recommendation.
I'll share with you that I was in Europe just last week. I went to Belgium and saw so many Remembrance Day ceremonies over there, on the night of the 10th and on November 11. What I saw and appreciated was how much the society over there still remembers conflicts from the past 105 years up through World War II until today.
We have to be very grateful that we thankfully do not have these sorts of problems and challenges here in Canada and that we have a beautiful society where people come together from all backgrounds and have built a project. This is something we should cherish and guard and actually share with the rest of the world.
I was touched by how much people remember and also how they remember the presence of Canada and Canadians. I spent the eve of November 10 in Passchendaele, where approximately 450,000 soldiers, young souls, died during World War I, over 105 years ago. This city, a space of over a few kilometres, was liberated by Canada.
One thing I'd like to share with this committee is the affection that the city of Passchendaele has for us as Canadians. I encourage those who are here watching this and those who are in this committee room—staff and others—to just go to this city, if ever they're in that region on November 11, and see the celebrations.
On this motion, I've said what I need to say. Maybe I'll have more to say on it in a bit, but for the moment I'd like to see this in a recommendation to be debated and discussed, as opposed to here.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.